Summary: What does the Holy Scripture teach us about God’s view of homosexuals and homosexuality. This is not an anti-gay sermon.

A few weeks ago the church down the road ran a couple of messages on its sign that said “Homosexuality is a sin. The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life.”

The newspaper called and asked me my opinion. I told the reporter that I thought it was great that the preacher there had the courage to speak the truth on a subject that was in the national spotlight.

Then the paper became a daily crucifixion of my self and this church as being hate mongers, intolerant, self-righteous, narrow-minded, unchristian bigots.

I felt there needed to be a response from this church but did not trust the newspaper as the proper venue for such a response. So, today I are giving my response to the editorials and to homosexuals who need to hear the truth about what the Christian faith says to them.

The issue is tremendously complex, too complex and large to cover in a single sermon. So… I am going to say that this is a Christian church that believes the bible is the authoritative, inerrant, trust-worthy word of the one true God. It is our ultimate source of authority. Thus our starting point and our guide will be the bible.

So we will be answering the question, “What does God say about homosexuality and all other sins.”

We are to examine this subject in the same way we should any other subject; as sinners redeemed by grace, not as moral superiors.

One of the charges leveled at this church and me is that we are homophobic. This morning I want us to answer the question, “Are Christians Homophobic?”

In a September, 1992 editorial in The New York Times, Dr. Richard Isay, chairman of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Issues Committee, of the American Psychiatric Association, defines homophobia as “the irrational fear and hatred of homosexuals.”

The problem is this definition cannot apply to a Christian addressing the subject of homosexuality. Why?

As for IRRATIONAL: Rational means according to reason. It means to have a sound basis or foundation for what you say or believe. Christians do have a very sound basis for what they say…. GOD”S WORD!!!! The Christian message is founded on the inerrant, unchanging, authoritative word of God… the bible.

As to FEAR OF HOMOSEXUALS: Christians do not have a fear OF homosexuals… we have a fear FOR homosexuals. We fear because we know that the wages of sin…. All sin…. Even homosexuality…. is death = eternal separation from God in hell.

Christians fear that if homosexuals, and murderers, and adulterers, and co-habitors, and liars, and thieves and all sinners do not hear the gospel, confess their sinfulness, and accept the salvation offered through Jesus Christ… they have no hope.

As for HATRED OF HOMOSEXUALS: Christians are not to hate anyone. The scripture is clear that we are to abhor sin, in order that we are to avoid it. God too abhors sin. But, like God, we are to love all persons. We are never allowed to mistreat, be rude to, or be unloving to any persons.

Therefore… irrational fear and hatred of any group is impossible for obedient Christians.

It was a very good sermon and I enjoyed reading it. I consider myself a christan and believe the Bible. The part about confessing the sin and saying that I sinned of my own free will bothers me. I don't think my sin is of my own free will. I am a homosexual and have been all my life. I just don't like sex with women. It just doesn't seem right, feel right, and actually is discusting to me. I love the male body and have very strong desires to make love to a male body. I don't do this. I am married and I am trying to live right. I go to church and participate in the service, and provide organ music for the hymns. I recently took a lay leaders class to become a layleader. I truely love God and want to spend eternity with him. I lust for men and can't seem to stop. I have prayed about it and some how feel this is the way God put me together, and he must have wanted me this way. I don't believe loving someone is sinful. If I were a male prostitute it would be a different story. I feel that is sinful and one shouldn't do that. Truely loving someone should not be a sin. I truely love God and Jesus. They are male. I wouldn't want to have sex with them or lust for them in any way. Nobody is that worthy. It would be an honor just to see them. I do fear spending eternity in hell for my beliefs and I am scared that I will be prosecuted for loving when I love God and Jesus most of all.